Tendulkar gets to 11,000 Test runs

Sachin Tendulkar's 11,000 runs have come in 223 innings, and he becomes the third player in the club, after Allan Border and Brian Lara

Sachin Tendulkar has had his share of problems against Monty Panesar, which is why it was probably fitting that he brought up his 11,000th Test run off him, driving him through the covers for four to move from 23 to 27. That shot took Tendulkar's tally to 11,002, next only to Brian Lara and Allan Border in the list of highest run-getters in Tests. Tendulkar has reached the milestone in 223 innings, which is 36 fewer than the number Border needed, but ten more than Lara's 213. However, Tendulkar's average of 55.43 is more than Border's (51.00) and Lara's (54.04) immediately after the innings in which they reached the landmark. (If Tendulkar gets out without adding to his 57, his average will be 55.16.)

Tendulkar hasn't been in the greatest form of late, but over the years he has given spectators plenty of champagne moments. The table below charts his progress to 11,000 runs: his best period was in the late 1990s - it took him only 38 Tests to move from 4000 to 8000. His last 1000 runs have come at a slower pace, taking him 17 Tests (28 innings).

Tendulkar's progression to 11,000 Test runs

Runs

Tests

Innings

Average

100s/ 50s

1000

19

28

41.46

4/ 4

2000

32

44

50.30

7/ 10

3000

45

67

50.85

10/ 15

4000

58

86

52.47

14/ 18

5000

67

103

53.19

18/ 20

6000

76

120

55.70

22/ 24

7000

85

136

57.98

26/ 28

8000

96

154

57.58

29/ 32

9000

111

179

56.82

32/ 36

10,000

122

195

57.70

34/ 40

11,000

139*

223

55.43

37/ 44

*Till close of play on the second day of the Trent Bridge Test

As Tendulkar's career summary shows, one of the highlights of his career has been his consistency against all teams and in all conditions. He averages 54.15 against Australia, and more than 50 against all teams except New Zealand (48.27), Pakistan (39.91) and South Africa (36.42). His record across continents is pretty good too, with the average dropping below 40 only in Africa (39.81).

The below lists the best batsmen against Australia in the period in which they have been the most dominant side. Among batsmen who've played at least ten Tests against them since 1990, only Kevin Pietersen has a better record, and the difference is marginal.

Best batsmen against Australia since 1990 (at least 10 Tests)

Batsman

Tests

Runs

Average

100s/ 50s

Kevin Pietersen

10

963

53.50

2/ 6

Sachin Tendulkar

21

1859

53.11

7/ 7

VVS Laxman

16

1457

52.03

4/ 6

Brian Lara

31

2856

51.00

9/ 11

Ijaz Ahmed

11

913

50.72

5/ 1

Richie Richardson

14

1084

49.27

4/ 4

Rahul Dravid

19

1503

48.48

2/ 8

Michael Vaughan

10

959

47.95

4/ 1

Graham Thorpe

16

1235

45.74

3/ 8

Graham Gooch

15

1344

44.80

3/ 9

The presence of other batting giants like Rahul Dravid, Mohammad Azharuddin and Sourav Ganguly has meant that Tendulkar has forged some excellent partnerships over these 18 years. His 97-run stand with Dravid at Trent Bridge took their overall partnership tally to 5009, which is the third-highest among all pairs, and the highest for a non-opening pair. (Greenidge and Haynes top the list with 6482, while Hayden and Langer are next with 6081.)